Sunday, June 14, 2015

I hope that little guy is in the driver's seat just for the photo. Looks about 8 years old.

Small family farms, averaging 231 acres, make up 88 percent of farms and 48 percent of total acres. Large family farms, averaging 1,421 acres, make up 3.9 percent of farms and 13 percent of acres. Very large family farms, averaging 2,086 acres, make up 4.6 percent of farms and 23 percent of total acres.

Farm and ranch families are 2% of the population and produce 262 percent more food with 2 percent fewer inputs (labor, seeds, feed, fertilizer, etc.), compared with 1950. 15% (21 million) of American workers produce, process and sell the nation’s food and fiber, but if you add in restaurant industry workers that's another 14 million. So it still takes a lot of people to feed America--and that doesn't include those Americans who have gardens for feeding their families.

Not sure what "support" means in this poster. The so called "food bill" of USDA is about 1 trillion and 80% goes to social programs not to farming--nutrition programs, energy assistance, rural housing assistance, changing our eating habits to make us less fat, more sustainable programs, etc.

About that kid on the tractor: On average, 113 youth, less than 20 years of age, died annually from farm-related injuries between 1995 and 2002. In 2011, 108 youth died. 33,000 children have farm-related injuries each year (OSHA). However, compared to sports related injuries for children, that's low. In 2009, an estimated 248,418 children (age 19 or younger) were treated in U.S. EDs for sports and recreation-related injuries that included a diagnosis of concussion or TBI. (CDC)